150-Science vs God Part 1

The spiritual condition of America, politics, culture, and current events, analyzed through the lens of Scripture. Welcome to the Alex McFarland Show. Has science disproven Christianity? Can the two be reconciled?

Do they need to be? Hi, Alex McFarland here. We're going to talk about science versus God and the Bible. One of the objections we sometimes hear from young people, especially, you know, I generally see this as maybe young adult males ages 18 to 24, and they'll ask us if science can be reconciled with the Bible. You know, I'm reminded of a quote by the Detroit news journalist Lewis Castle some years ago. Castle once wrote, quote, every age has its superstitions, and ours is the notion that science is an all-sufficient guide to truth.

So I want to talk about that. You know, very famously, the Bible says in Genesis 1, verse 1, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And there was a time when there were Babylonian and Egyptian creation myths, and scholars would say, well, the Bible is a creation myth. Maybe that the biblical writers borrowed from the other pagan nations around them.

But a couple of things have come to light more and more in recent scholarship. First, I believe that the Bible is God's supernatural revelation. The Bible is a God-breathed word. But it's worth noting that more and more, the plain creation descriptions of Genesis do mesh with what modern physics says, that the universe had a beginning, and it was an instantaneous beginning. And there had to be a causal agent beyond time, space, and matter to initiate the beginning. And so, scientifically, Genesis meshes with what physicists believe about the beginnings of the universe. But even textually, now more and more scholarship is saying that, if anything, the pagan nations borrowed from and perverted what the Hebrew creation narrative was. And of course, the God of the Hebrew is Yahweh, the one God, not multiple gods, not polytheism. But even in some of the creation myths, there's a concept of a Sabbath and one day of the week that is for rest.

But I'm going to take the Bible as God's word for many compelling lines of evidence. And of course it says, in the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth. Now, it wasn't an eternal universe. Contrary to Stephen Hawking's final edition of A Brief History of Time, it wasn't a universe that, quote, could have created itself, but it was a universe, a finite, limited universe, a wonderful universe, but a universe that's finite, created by a being beyond time and space, who is infinite.

So let's ask some questions. Is biblical creation a myth unsupported by true science? And the answer is no. Now, let's talk about some necessary definitions, one of which is the definition of science, because science is about that which is observable, testable, and repeatable. And evolution is not that.

We do not observe it, not what properly is called macroevolution, something jumping phyla and one species turning into another species. That's never been observed. And so true science is repeatable and observable and quantifiable and testable. So whatever one believes about origins, you have to believe by faith. A lot of skeptics pride themselves on saying, you know, I don't believe in things by faith. But really, faith is trust.

Trust arrived at based on the available knowledge. We make faith decisions all the time. I mean, we eat in restaurants and they don't interview all the cooks.

They don't look at all the expiration dates in the kitchen. You get on an airplane. That is really a step of faith.

You don't interview the maintenance crew or the pilot. You just trust that it will be safe. So faith is a proportioned response of trust arrived at based on the available data. And really, the word science is thrown about so much. But in reality, to be accurate, there are the sciences. There's biology and chemistry and forensic pathology and astrophysics. And every branch of the sciences has really a specific set of parameters and postulates. But many people at the pop level, they just throw out the claim that science, quote unquote, has disproven the Bible.

And that's just simply not true. Now, there is no one universally agreed upon discipline called science. There are the sciences.

That's important to point out. So when anybody ever says to me, you know, science has disproven the Bible, I'll say, okay, which branch of the sciences do you refer to? And, you know, is there a specific, you know, verified, repeatable scientific discovery that you feel like refutes the Bible?

Because there isn't one. And in fact, as we see later in the series, many renowned scientists were not only believers in God, but specifically Christian. Now, let me throw out a word, and the word is theism. T-H-E-I-S-M. Theism is belief in God, a God who created, a God who can intervene in the world, and a God who can be known. Christianity is theistic. If you're a Christian believer, you are a theist. Not atheist, but you are theistic. And so there is this assumption that theism, in other words belief in a creator God, somehow means irrationality.

And I want to say this. Theism does not guarantee irrationality, and naturalism does not guarantee rationality. The presence of PhDs and scientists does not somehow guarantee objectivity. Many examples could be given. I've got an article here that was in the news a couple of years ago, when fraud wriggles itself into science.

And it's talking about grant money, and it's talking about awards and department head positions. And this subtitle says, scientists lie to us sometimes, but letting it taint the whole field would prove perilous. And yet there are many documented examples of scientists fudging their data, as Einstein once did, lying about things. I've got another article here that made the National Wire Services about a year ago, politics in the guise of pure science. And I think about during COVID, how over and over the left would say, follow the science. And yet, more and more, we're finding out that the narrative that was presented in the news in no way was corroborated by the facts around the origins of COVID, the quarantines, the six-foot spacing that we all had to go through whenever standing in lines, wasn't based on science at all. And certainly there's been much, much, much misinformation about the climate, the impact of human activity on the climate, the carbon footprint, the validity of EVs, so many things. So let's talk about science, and let's talk about truth and rationality.

When we come back after this brief break, science and God, are they necessarily in conflict? Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this.

With myself and Jim Wallace, go to thecove.org, thecove.org, and I hope to see you next summer. while also empowering the unchurched to find out the truth for themselves. In the midst of a culture obsessed with relativism, Alex is a sound voice who speaks timeless truths of Christianity in a timely way. With 18 published books to his name, it's no surprise that CNN, Fox, the Wall Street Journal, and other media outlets have described Alex as a religion and culture expert. To learn more about Alex and to book him as a speaker at your next event, visit alexmcfarland.com, or you can contact us directly by emailing booking at alexmcfarland.com. He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to The Alex McFarland Show. Welcome back to the program.

Alex McFarland here. We're talking about science versus God and the Bible. One of my favorite Psalms is Psalm 91, and Psalm 91 verse 1 says, The heavens declare the glory of God.

The skies proclaim the work of his hands. There's a powerful object lesson that every human sees every day, and it's called the created world all around us. Everywhere we look at the microcosmic level and the macrocosmic levels, we see incredible design, order, structure, functionality. And really true science is the observation, identification, classification, and investigation of phenomena, resulting in theoretical explanations. The pot of water sitting on the counter doesn't boil. The pot of water sitting on the stove eventually does boil.

Maybe heat moves those molecules, and the boiling of the water is somehow related to the fact that that pot is over a heat source. So all around us we have theories, and Charles Darwin's theory, although we'll get to Darwin. I think so many of the militant evolutionists today have gone really far beyond what Charles Darwin would have envisioned or encouraged. I'm certainly no fan of Charles Darwin, but he said he deserved to be called a theist. Isn't that amazing?

You would never hear that in a public school classroom. But it's worth pointing out that scientists do not enjoy the unified front many assume. Now there are many scientific theories, and there are many scientific discoveries. I'm very thankful that in my home state of North Carolina the Wright brothers perfected the airfoil, and flew the airplane with an engine they built themselves.

I'm very thankful that in my home state of North Carolina they say in Thomasville, North Carolina, the basic principles that would result in indoor air conditioning were developed, and heat extraction creating what we perceive to be cold air. So there are many things science has done for us, and in fact right now I'm recording this, and you're hearing this on devices that were made by people that understood principles of electricity. But here's the thing. On so many of the very amorphous, vague things, including the origin of the universe, when you don't accept that an eternal God created the universe, and God is not only the ground of moral truth, but of reality itself, if you take away a causal agent that adequately explains everything, you're left with just 10,000 vague guesses. Now in philosophy there was William of Ockham, and Ockham's razor is a principle, a razor or sharp object to trim the fat.

In other words, set forth the explanation that is the simplest, answers the most questions, and raises the fewest. You know, Thomas Aquinas and C.S. Lewis both would say that the best teacher is the one who does not dig a ditch in front of a student for a student to fall into.

But if there is a ditch or a gap that must be traversed, a good educator will help the student cross the gap. Now what am I saying? Evolution that has had a stranglehold on the public school classroom for decades. Evolution says there is no God.

Okay. Everything came from nothing. We've never observed that.

Chaos is the mother of order. We've never observed that. Information can arise from a non-intelligent source.

We've never observed that. And the DNA, plant, animal, human DNA is encrypted data, and yet we've never observed information arise from an unintelligent source. So naturalism, the idea that the natural world is all there is, there is no supernatural. A militantly inflexible naturalistic view characterizes so much of education today. We might also call it empiricism.

Okay, empirical physical data is the only test for truth. Well, that's the dominant view that in most secular academic settings cannot be questioned. And yet, naturalism, physicalism, empiricism, evolutionism, secularism, it answers few questions and raises many.

And when you have so many opinions vying for dominance, really the culture and the student is at risk for just the dominant view holding sway, whether or not that dominant view is actually true. Now in the case of theism, we say that the finite world is the product of an infinite God. Why are there objective moral truths known to every human? Because our Creator is moral, in fact righteous.

Why do we view human life as above any other life form? And we believe that human beings, all human beings, have inherent worth and value and dignity because we are made in God's image. And do you know a secular evolutionary worldview would have never given us the Bill of Rights, the U.S. Constitution, British common law, and the Magna Carta? These things around the world, and specifically in America, that guarantee the protection of the rights and liberties and dignity of all persons, they did not come from an evolutionary non-theistic worldview. They came from a theistic worldview. So it's worth talking about that the naturalistic bias of evolutionary assumptions have many negative implications. Will Provine in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell said this. Dr. Provine said, quote, Let me summarize my views on what modern evolutionary biology tells us loud and clear.

I would say he should phrase that loudly and clearly. But Provine goes on and says, There are no gods, no purposes, no goal-directed forces of any kind. There is no life after death. When I die, I am absolutely certain that I'm going to be dead.

That's the end for me. There is no ultimate foundation for ethics, no ultimate meaning to life, and no free will for humans either. End of quote. Isn't it amazing he is telling us what he's decided and what he believes, and yet he doesn't think there's free will.

And, you know, I am sure that he would want to be respected and be allowed to voice that opinion. You know, it's amazing how non-theistic people co-opt and borrow from theism. They don't want a god to whom they're accountable, but they do want the benefits of a universe with god, which is moral protection, personhood, and recognition, and the freedom to say what they believe. And so this is part of the contradiction of evolutionary voices in our culture. The naturalistic bias of the evolutionists just shows through so loudly and clearly. Now when we come back, we're going to talk about the fact that scientists do not enjoy the unified front that many assume. Please do not believe that science is necessarily anti-god and secular.

In some quarters it is. But there are many earned PhDs in the hard sciences that do believe in god, moral truth, and many are born-again Christians. The struggle between science and god when we come back. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert.

Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this. What does that mean? Loving substitution. Here's the thing, because Jesus Christ loves you, he was our substitute on Calvary's cross. The appropriate measure of God's wrath that you and I deserved was put onto Jesus. You don't have to die and suffer for your sins because he was the substitute who died for you. So if you call out to Christ, he will save you, he will forgive you.

I urge you to do that today, because Jesus Christ has a plan for your life, and it begins with you putting your faith in him. Thank you for listening. Thank you for your support. Learn more about this at AlexMcFarland.com. Welcome back to the program.

Alex McFarland here. We're going to resume our talk about science versus God in the Bible, and these are among the questions that young people ask in our summer camps, and I hope everyone is in prayer. You know, 2025 is shaping up to be an incredible year for these ministries, and I want to say a big thank you and a big shout out to those that pray for our ministries and support what we're doing. We have seven youth camps this summer in Iowa and in Montana and Virginia near Richmond, all over the country.

The website is EquipRetreat.org. And 1,200 teenagers will be in our youth camps to learn about Jesus, to learn about God and country, and to be inspired. And so I want to thank all those who pray for and help support what we're doing. Then we've got a speaker series in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. You know, Myrtle Beach is known for the theaters down here.

Well, we've rented some theaters. And May 4th, we've got Dinesh D'Souza. June 15, Gary Chapman, author of the five love languages. August 21, Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA.

And of course, September 14, Lauren Green of Fox News. And we'll have a roundtable on the state of the American church. So plan your vacation. If you are coming to the number one vacation destination in America, Myrtle Beach will be here May 4, June 15, August 21, and September 14. And you can go to AlexMcFarland.com to learn more. Also, you've heard me say that Angie and I will be at the Cove, the Billy Graham Training Center in western North Carolina.

July 18-20, I'll be teaching the book of Job, Why Is There Pain and Suffering? And then July 28-August 1, I'll be there with J. Warner Wallace. You've seen him on Dateline with Keith Morrison, Jim Wallace, the great detective. He's written many books defending Christianity. And he and I will teach you how to defend the Christian faith.

The website is thecove.org. And finally, let me say we have got a growing staff. We're on radio seven days a week, television, events publishing, broadcasting, to call people to salvation and to call America's youth to God and country. For those that help us financially and pray for us, we sincerely thank you.

You may give securely at AlexMcFarland.com. And for helping us evangelize the lost and equip the saved and call our nation to Christ, we sincerely thank you for your help. Well, we've been talking about God and science. And before the break, I was talking about one scientist who very candidly was talking about how he didn't believe there was any meaning to life. But the limitations, failures of a Darwinistic naturalistic worldview are often acknowledged. There was a philosopher of science, Karl Popper, who actually was a colleague of Albert Einstein. Karl Popper said this about evolution. Quote, Darwinism is not a testable scientific theory, but a metaphysical research program.

Now, metaphysics relates to the supernatural, the nonphysical world. Questions about what was here before our solar system. Why are we here? Not just how does the body operate, but why? Why is there human life?

And for someone like a Will Provine, the answer is, well, there's no reason. Life is meaningless. And can you understand the nihilism? Nihilism is N-I-H-I-L-I-S-M, to be nihilistic.

That's the Latin word for nothing. See, we believe God created ex nihilo, out of nothing. Well, nihilism is the assumption that life means nothing. Life is meaningless. That's why people delve into the abyss and the black hole of drugs and substance abuse and self-harm and things that lead to nothing but the grave, because they're very nihilistic.

If you've ever met a person who has no hope, no initiative, no motivation, and they think that life is just to veg out and die, that's nihilism, and it's a philosophy of death. And yet Richard Dawkins, Will Provine, and others have said that that's the answer, is that there is no answer. And when Karl Popper, a renowned philosopher of science, he lived 1902 to 1994, he says that evolutionary atheistic Darwinism is a metaphysical research program, end of quote.

What he meant by that was people were looking for a reason to give themselves permission to not think about facing God one day. Not a testable scientific theory. You know, if you think, gee, that two by four beam on my front porch is strong enough to hold a swing, and I'll hang a swing and my wife and I will sit there.

Well, I mean, that's a scientific theory. I see that two by four and I think it can hold us. Now the way you test that theory, there are a number of ways you can do it. One way you could do it and potentially get hurt is to hang a swing on a little beam and sit there and you'll feel it if it breaks. And you will know the tensile or the load-bearing capacity of a two by four.

If you want to put up a swing and hold a couple of adults, maybe you might try a four by six. But Darwinism, as Karl Popper said, is not testable, observable, repeatable. Therefore, it is a faith position. Now people are free to believe in evolution, just like they're free to believe in Scientology, UFOs, Bigfoot, or anything. Just like Christians are free to believe in the God of the Bible.

But here's my point. You can be an evolutionist, but don't call it science. Because whatever you believe about the origin of the universe, you have to believe by faith. Because none of us were there. We can't repeat the creation of the universe. We can't observe the birth of the universe.

However, there was someone there as an observer. And in Genesis 1 and 2, we have the account of the only eyewitness observer of the creation, and that's Almighty God. And you say, but the Bible, why should I accept that as being supernatural revelation? Why should I accept that Genesis 1-1 is wholly writ? A lot of reasons. And we've, by God's grace, created a lot of content on that.

Numbers of our books go to Barnes and Noble, and just, if my books aren't on the shelf, they should be, but if they're not, just ask for our books. In the 10 Objections book, we go to great lengths to talk about science. In the 100 Bible Questions and Answers book, we talk much about science. But let me say this, and we're almost out of time for this particular program.

There's a wonderful website that I would urge you to Google. A Scientific Dissent from Darwin. D-I-S-S-E-N-T. Darwin wrote The Descent of Man. D-E-S-C-E-N-T.

But descent, in other words, pushing back. And there are hundreds of earned PhDs, scientists in all of the disciplines, that have signed this online statement saying that we are skeptical of the claims of natural selection to adequately account for the complexity of life. Now it says much more, and we will get into it in depth in part two. But in the meantime, let me remind you that the same God that claims to be Creator is the God that claims to be Savior. In fact, the entirety of Scripture could be put under one of two headings. God's great work of creation, God's great work of redemption. The first part of God's plan was created in six days, and He rested on the seventh.

The rest of God's plan from the promise to Adam and Eve of the seed of the woman, the call of Abraham, the birth of Israel, the birth of Israel's Messiah, Christ's resurrection, Pentecost, the birth of the church, the spread of the gospel, the reformation, the birth of America, and here we are today. That's been part of God's great work of salvation. Do you know, if you need to know what it means to know God, if you wait until you've answered all the questions, you'll never come. And I'm not saying don't ask the questions, and I'm not saying don't seek answers, but know this, the most verifiable fact of the ancient world, the eyewitness documentation that the man who claimed to be able to forgive sin rose from the dead. John 6.40, Jesus said, If you believe in Him, He will forgive you, save you, raise you up to everlasting life at the end of time. So, let me encourage you, go to our website, AlexMcFarland.com, look at the tab, What Does God Say About My Relationship With Him? And remember, Jesus is as close by as a prayer. More about the controversy of science versus God in our next show. You may also reach us by calling 1-877-YES-GOD1. That's 1-877-YES-GOD1. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you again about God, faith, and the Bible, so visit the website, AlexMcFarland.com, and look for the section that says, Ask Alex Online.